House Divided
by NoLanding
Summary: What happens when a marriage law forces all of our favorites witches and wizards to co-exist with people they never liked? My take on a post-battle/marriage law fic. Focused on Hermione/Draco, but features quite a bit of Ron, Harry, Ginny, Luna, etc.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: My take on a marriage law/after the last battle story. Hope you enjoy it. I will try my very best to update regularly. Suggestions are entirely welcome and highly encouraged!  
**

Chapter I- Of Love and Surprises

Life since the final war hadn't been what Hermione Granger expected. She had a job at the Magical Law Enforcement Department, but, besides that, life had not been particularly good to her. She had been living with Harry in a flat near Diagon Alley and while she loved having someone to talk to, she missed the 3rd part of the Trio. Ever since their kiss in the Room of Requirement, Hermione had always seen her future with Ron. They would live together, stay together, and eventually get married and have bushy-haired, redheaded kids. However, things hadn't gone the way she wanted them to. He had gone off to fulfill his dream of becoming a professional Quidditch player. He was playing for the Cannons, as was expected. He had also catapulted them into a winning streak, which surprised many people, but not Hermione.

She went to work every morning, came home every evening, made dinner, talked to Harry, and went to bed. Nothing ever happened, and life had never been so dull. Sure, she didn't miss the war, Voldemort, or living in fear, but this sedate life hardly suited her either. She didn't exactly want adventure; she simply wanted a break from the monotony. Ginny came to visit them often, bringing treats and news from Mrs. Weasley. She was one of the only exciting things that ever happened at 912 Cansiber Lane, Hermione's flat. Nothing had happened so far between Ginny and Harry, no matter how hard Hermione pushed the both of them.

On a frigid Monday evening, Hermione sat in her blue and gold kitchen while the water boiled for pasta. She sat on the kitchen counter, gazing out the window, looking down at the passerby on the street, all carrying parcels and other various things. She was holding a new muggle book in her hand, A Great and Terrible Beauty, which she had purchased from the bookstore across the street. It was written by a witch, but that tidbit was unbeknownst to the Muggles. She heard the front door swing open and shut and soon Harry was standing at the kitchen door. Even though they both worked at the ministry, Harry's job as an Auror usually kept him later. He walked over to Hermione and kissed her forehead. "Alright, love?" he asked while he looked straight into her eyes.

"I suppose. Ron phoned." Hermione answered. Harry's face registered surprise.

"Did he, now? What did he say?"

"Well, that he's all right, and he's coming to visit soon." He smiled weakly.

"Okay, well I'm going to go shower and I'll be down for dinner soon."

Hermione simply nodded. She put the pasta to cook, and served it in a few minutes. Harry came downstairs, wearing his starred pajamas, which he only wore around Hermione, who would never make fun of him for it (seeing as she had her own pair) and they talked about their jobs and so on. After finishing dinner, Hermione quickly excused herself. When had life become a routine? She wondered. The most exciting thing that had happened in months was Ron calling. And she wasn't terribly happy about that. Yes, she was in love with Ron, but there were many things they had to work out. Hermione went to bed, hoping that somehow, the cards would turn on the morrow.

The rest of the week passed by slowly. On Saturday, Hermione, Harry and Ginny decided to take a trip down to Hogsmeade, just to have some fun and pass the time. They went to all the shops and then the Three Broomsticks for butterbeers. Hermione and Ginny found a table while Harry went to Madam Rosmerta to get their drinks. He quickly returned, setting down butterbeers for the ladies and firewhisky for himself.

"So have you heard about this stupid marriage project the ministry is cooking up?" Ginny asked the both of them.

Harry looked surprised and asked, "Where'd you hear this?"

Ginny took a sip of her butterbeer then replied, "At work. Some of the secretaries were discussing it, and it sounds preposterous."

She said indignantly. Ginny worked at Verdad Parchment, the new most popular andtrustworthy newspaper, which was rapidly overtaking the Daily Prophet.

"What exactly does it entail, Ginny?" Hermione asked.

"Well apparently they're picking about 20 young people, pairing them, making them be confined in a house for a year, and the only way to get out is to conceive!" Ginny replied, flustered, and stole a glance at Harry, who had turned his head, but turned back to look at her intensely.

"Are the young people allowed to refuse?" Hermione asked.

"Of course not, Hermione. Who would ever voluntarily agree to that?" Harry shot back.

"I'd say we should just hope none of us are one of the 20 young people," Ginny lamented, "I wouldn't quite know what to do with myself."

When Harry and Hermione returned home that evening, they found two envelopes sitting patiently waiting for them on their living room table. One was addressed to Miss Hermione Jane Granger and the other to Auror Mr. Harry James Potter.

"What are these?" Harry asked, as if speaking to himself. Hermione heard him as if through water, or from a trance. She could imagine what these letters would reveal. Hermione picked hers up.

_"This letter serves the purpose of informing you about your participation in a rather interesting experiment. Your participation is compulsory by law. You will be matched with someone around your age, and marry them. You, your match and several other couples will live in a house together. Once a couple conceives an heir, they will be allowed to come and go from the house, and will in time be supplied a house for themselves. If a couple is disrupting the peace, they will be placed in a new house by themselves, which they will not be able to leave until an heir is conceived. Couples will be allowed a year to determine whether to stay together, or terminate the marriage. The purpose of this experiment is to see how single young wizards and witches, matched upon compatibility, will actually function as a couple. Further instructions will be given to you upon your arrival at Kennetneiss Manor. Following is the name of your match."_

Hermione gasped in anticipation.

_Draco Malfoy._

If Hermione had previously complained that life wasn't exciting, it bloody hell had changed. Harry hadn't even said a word that night; he had just gone up to his room. Hermione had picked up his letter from where he had unknowingly dropped it, crumpled. His match was Lavender Brown. Ginny had Apparated to their flat, tears streaming from her face, clutching a letter as well. She had simply cried on Hermione's shoulder. Much later that evening, they were interrupted by a faint pop. Standing in front of them had been none other than Ron Weasley. Ginny had rushed forward and hugged him, but Hermione had merely waved. Hermione now stood remembering in front of the fireplace, waiting for Harry. They had to drop their lives, and rush out to do this experiment. They were expected today at 9:30 at the house in which all of the couples would live. It was already 9:25 and Harry hadn't come downstairs, not even to eat breakfast. Hermione slowly climbed the stairs to his room, and softly knocked on the door. She received no response. She opened the door to find Harry sitting next to his trunk, with his head in his hands.

"I don't want to do this, Hermione. I really don't." He whispered.

"None of us do," She said, as she stroked his hair.

"I'll be there for you, every step of the way." She said. He tried to smile.

"You'll have it tougher 'Mione, with Malfoy to deal with." "I suppose I will."

Hermione was secretly, or perhaps not so secretly, terrified of the prospect of leading a married life with someone like Draco Malfoy. Harry squeezed her hand, and told her that everything would be all right. They were standing in the living room of their new residence. Not too long ago, they had been looking at the foreboding façade of the Manor. It was all black, except for its several stained glass windows. It looked sinister and brooding, but only on the outside. Now that they were inside it was, Hermione hated to admit, just as cozy and welcoming as Hogwarts. There were people from all the different houses assembled here, and also a Ministry witch, come to tell them their instructions. Hermione glanced at Draco standing across from her. He was shooting her looks of pure hatred and disgust. This wasn't exactly her fault, was it now? She thought bitterly. Even though he was trying to reassure her, Harry looked green and unsettled himself.

"All right, everybody! Pair up," said the extremely, almost annoyingly cheery Ministry Witch, whose name was Amora Decandere.

"Better get it over with," said Harry, as he released her hand and walked over to Lavender. Despite the fact that he felt horrible and could've thrown up on Lavender's shoes, Harry warmly greeted her with a smile and a hug, and Hermione could see he was telling her that it had been too long since he had seen her last at graduation. Harry might have been head over heels in love with someone else, but he would always be the polite gentleman. Hermione silently watched all the boys go to their soon-to -be wives with regret. She could see the suffering in their faces, and her heart leapt to her throat and cut off her breathing when she saw Ron. He joined Parvati Patil, albeit not very happily. Ginny was settled next to Seamus Finnigan, Fred and Demelza Robins were talking animatedly, George looked at Romilda Vane with caution and distaste as she ogled at Harry, Dean Thomas was leading Luna to a chair, Marcus Belby and Katie Bell stood awkwardly next to each other, Susan Bones stared shyly at Ritchie Cootes, while he looked anywhere but at her, and a now, beautiful, transformed Millicent Bullstrode and Blaise Zabini were staring menacingly at each other. As everyone settled down in chairs around the room, they noticed that there were two people still standing.

"Now, now, be a dear and sit by Ms. Granger," Ms. Decandere said to Draco.

"Will it be at all possible to be reassigned?" He drawled.

"No, not for a year," the witch said sternly, but her smile was back in place immediately.

"I refuse to sit next to the Mudblood," he protested. Harry and Ron started to open their mouths but Hermione stopped them. She stared steadily at Draco.

"You know, we're going to have to live with each other for a year. You might as well stop being a baby. We don't have to like each other. Hell, we don't even have to talk to each other. But we're going to have to cooperate," she said.

"I don't care about cooperation! I want to live my life, all right? I don't want to waste a year spending it with you," he shouted.

"Well, it doesn't seem like either of us has a choice, does it?" She screamed back. Draco whipped out his wand before anyone noticed. "Confundo!", he shouted.

"Protego," Hermione countered.

"I figured you would try something like that," she said calmly.

"How can you be calm?" he said.

"Furnunculus," he tried again, but Hermione was too quick.

"Densagueo," He tried once again.

Hermione screamed, "IMPEDIMENTA." He immediately froze.

"Incarcerous," she said again, then summoned him to her side and sat him down. She also performed Expelliarmus, so he wouldn't try anything silly anymore. She smiled at everyone in the room and at Amora.

"So now we know who wears the pants in this relationship," said Dean under his breath. Everyone but the Slytherins quietly laughed.

"Well, we don't want anymore of that happen. Does everyone understand?" Ms. Decandere asked. Every nodded their heads but Draco.

"I won't make any promises." He growled.

"Tut, tut," replied Ms. Decandere. "All righty, moving on to the rules. You've heard some of these all ready," she said, as words began to appear on a chalkboard in the middle of the room.

"Number 1, you may not leave the house, until you've procured an heir, or the year is up. Couples who conceive an heir will be moved to a house for themselves, and will be allowed to come and go. Couples who make trouble," here she stopped and looked at Hermione and Draco, "will also be moved to a house for themselves, but they will not be allowed to come and go until an heir is conceived, or the year is over. Number 2, you must attempt to be civil to each other. Number 3, you must not cheat. Number 4, each couple will share a room. Number 5, there will be a big surprise tomorrow. That's it! Have loads of fun!" she said as she Disapparated with a faint pop.

"She must be mad if she thinks I'm sharing a room with you. You'll just have to sleep outside the door. Now release me you stupid Mudblood," he commanded.

"You'll have to ask more nicely than that," Hermione refused.

"Zabini, Millicent, do something," he pleaded.

"Draco, this is much too entertaining," Millicent replied while Zabini smirked.

"All right, enough," Draco said. With only one hand motion he liberated himself of his bonds. "I didn't want to have to do that; it drains my energy. Also, I didn't want to embarrass the little Mudblood by showing off."

Hermione was quite surprised but she merely shot him a withering glare and stood up. She walked over to where Harry was standing. He still looked faintly green, but was, at least, not accompanied by Lavender.

"It'll be alright," she told him.

"No, Hermione, it will not," he said, as he stormed upstairs, which she supposed was where the rooms were. She looked at Lavender as she watched Harry go. Lavender looked confused and scared. It was the first time Hermione had ever felt compassion for her.

"Hermione," a voice called behind her. She turned around and stared into Ron's blue eyes. He reached out a hand to her. She flinched.

"Will you ever forgive me?" He asked her, his eyes wild and tortured. She measured her words.

"I will, in time. Just not now," she replied. She was strong now; she could deal with him. She walked up to him, rested her hand on his cheek, and brushed a kiss across his cheek. It would be hard living in the same house as him, but she could do it. He turned around and walked to Parvati, and then went upstairs with her. Hermione then realized, by looking around the mostly empty room, that the majority of the couples had gone upstairs. Soon, Malfoy and she were the only ones in the living room.

"I don't suppose you could make yourself useful and fix me something to eat," he said, looking at her sideways.

"No. You can very well get up and do it yourself," he quickly strode over to her and roughly pushed her into a wall. "Look, Granger," he said, as he placed his arm next to her face. "We're going to do things my way. Now, I don't want anymore of those little shows we put on just a while ago for everyone. You understand?" he asked.

"You foul git," she spit out.

"Watch your mouth." As he said this, he was wrenched back from her. Dean was holding Draco by the collar. "Don't you lay a finger on her," he threatened. Dean had always stood up for everyone around Hogwarts, especially his female classmates.

"Hermione here, she's a lady. Treat her as such. Now, I don't expect you to know how, since you aren't a gentleman, but you had better learn, Malfoy," he said, releasing him from his grip.

"Thank you, Dean!" Hermione called. He just waved over his shoulder. Hermione took one last look at Draco, sprawled on the floor, breathless, and then started climbing the stairs. She was tired, and tomorrow was going to be a big day.

"Glisseo," she heard Malfoy shout, and the stairs instantly turned into a slide. Hermione slid down, screaming the whole way, and ended up right under Draco.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HERMIONE?" Ron screamed as he came around the corner and took in the sight. Immediately he bound Draco, only to have him fall on top of Hermione.

"Oh my goodness," Ron moaned. He quickly slid down then rolled Draco off of her. The stairs turned back to their original position. Draco kept screaming for them to release him, because right after getting up, Hermione had silently placed an anti-wandless magic charm on him. Hermione ignored him, and Ron, and looked for her and Malfoy's room. After walking down an endless corridor she found a door that had their names engraved in it. Ron caught up to her.

"Hermione, will you be okay?" he asked. She nodded. She firmly shut the door and flicked on the lights, only to realize that there was only one bed in the room. Since Draco wasn't here she could just take the bed, and he could conjure another. Hermione had had too much excitement for one day and she had time only to wash her face before exhaustion overtook her.

Hermione was woken up a few hours later by Draco stumbling in the room, and turning on the lights. "What? I'm also expected to sleep in the same bed as you?" he asked, truly bewildered.

"Who took pity on you?"

"None of your business!"

Hermione wanted to know who had released him from the charm. "No, you can just conjure one for yourself," she replied sleepily to his previous question.

"What if I don't want to?" he challenged.

"Then I suppose you'll have to be content with the floor, because I don't think you want to sleep with the dirty Mudblood." He quickly magicked a bed and sheets and a pillow, next to Hermione's. He took off his shirt and changed into pajama pants all right in front of her. Hermione was surprised and taken aback that he would have the audacity to change right in front of her. She blankly looked at him, in shock.

"Don't stare," he said, a smirk forming. "I've lost the Mudblood thing, by the way. I was very upset. I didn't mean it," he whispered, almost inaudibly, as if he did not want Hermione to hear, and before she could ask him to repeat it, he had turned off the lights.

* * *

**A/N: I'd love it if you reviewed and let me know what you think.  
My quote of choice for the week: "But oh, you caught me sleeping in the power sockets. You caught mildewing the tiles of the bathroom."-Ghosting by Freelance Whales.**


	2. Of Love and Schemes

**A/N: Back again! Hiya! Hope you all enjoyed the first chapter, and hope you all continue to read my story! I want to give a shout-out to MrsSnape2u for favoriting my story, and for my first review. I would also like to thank ixlikexsumxone, jessirose85, pinpin95, and Tempted Sacrifice for being the first to put my story on their alert list! **

Chapter 2- Of Love and Schemes

Hermione woke up the next morning, completely disoriented. She had no idea where she was, how she had gotten there, or what she was doing there. She jumped out of bed and turned around. When she noticed Draco Malfoy sleeping peacefully in the bed next to hers, she let out a high-pitched scream. Draco immediately shot up and leaped to his feet.

"What? Where? What's going on?" he slurred, his voice husky with sleep. All of the events of the past couple of days hit Hermione like a train, and she swayed on her feet. However, before she could fall, Draco's hand shot out and encircled her wrist, pulling her upright.

"Merlin woman, is this how you normally wake up? I bet Potter doesn't take too kindly to that." Hermione sat back down on the bed, feeling more tired than ever.

"I'm sorry," she said softly. She really was. Draco looked over at her after hearing her speak so meekly. Looking at her, he noticed that her attire was hardly appropriate.

"Put on some clothes on, Mudblood. I don't know what you're trying to show me, but I don't want to see it," he said rudely.

Hermione grabbed her robe and wrapped it around her waist, thinking that he must have forgotten that he had told her last night that he'd given up 'mudblood'.

"Malfoy, I'm not trying to show you anything. You could go die, for all I care," she snapped back.

This was not her morning, not her week, month, or year.

"Good to know," he replied. Hermione decided to leave it at that. She quickly took a shower, washed her hair and put on a pretty, new sundress she had found at one of her favorite shops. There was a knock at the door.

"Hurry up already. You're dreadfully ugly as it is. Spending loads of time in the bathroom won't make you prettier," Draco called. She opened the door and flounced past him.

"Huh, Granger. I take it back. You can actually look not ugly, if you put in the effort."

"Thank you for the compliment, Malfoy." She said sarcastically as he closed the door. Hermione did not feel like going downstairs and socializing, so she sat on the couch to read. Suddenly the door to the bathroom opened and Draco stood there, only in his towel.

"Sorry, I forgot my clothes out here." He said as he blushed to the roots of his hair. Did Draco Malfoy just apologize to me? Hermione thought. This was already bizarre enough. Once she raised her head, Draco was already halfway in the bathroom.

She heard a knock on the door and got up to answer.

"Hermione?" Ginny called through the door. She tumbled in the room as soon as Hermione opened the door. Ginny just hugged her and wouldn't let go.

"God, Hermione, this is terrible. I mean, Seamus is a good bloke and all, but it's just so uncomfortable. I'm in love with Harry, 'Mione." A tear slid down her cheek and she roughly wiped it away.

"Listen to me, complaining, when you're stuck with Malfoy. I mean Seamus might be a bit awkward, but at least he wasn't a Death Eater." She said. Ginny was in such a flurry that neither of them heard the shower shut off or the door open.

"It's great to know what your opinion of me is," came Draco's voice. He was drying his hair on a towel.

"Excuse me." Ginny said, and rushed out the door. She was a brave girl, but she didn't want to cross anyone she might have to live with for a year. She feared it might be a little late.

"As you said, and as much as it pains me to admit, we have to cooperate. I'm going to be your husband for a year, so I suggest your friends get over their prejudice." He said darkly.

"You obviously weren't supposed to hear that." Hermione snapped.

"Well, all the better that I did ,then, is it not?" He countered. "I live cleanly, Granger. What I did 4 years ago was a survival strategy. I had no choice. So I won't let anyone judge me for it." Hermione just stared at him. "Now I'm going to get breakfast. You can stay there and continue gaping, if you would like." He smirked.

Hermione went downstairs, and found that most of the couples were already there. Ron and Ginny were sitting together across from Lavender and Seamus, Millicent and Zabini were eating their breakfast while warily staring at each other. Fred and George were talking by the corner and Romilda was staring at them. Demelza and Dean were sitting playing wizard chess. Marcus and Ritchie were talking to Harry about Quidditch. Parvati, Luna, Katie, and Susan, however, were nowhere to be found. Draco was off by himself sulking over toast, surely angry at Millicent and Zabini for not obeying him when he asked to be released. Hermione got herself a bowl of cereal and went over to sit on the couch. Harry quickly joined her, still in his pajamas. It seemed as if she and Draco were the only ones who had felt too indecent.

"Did he try anything?" Harry whispered in her ear. She scoffed.

"He thinks I'm disgusting. Don't worry about me." Harry changed the subject.

"So, Ron is pretty torn up about everything, after all these years. Would it be so hard to just forgive him?"

"Yes, Harry. It's plenty hard. We've already had this discussion." She didn't feel hungry anymore. She got up and went to her room, which gave her privacy but no comfort. She didn't know how long she had sat on her bed, just staring out the window when there was a knock on the door. "WHAT? Can't you just leave me be?" She shouted.

Draco opened the door. "Gladly, but I'm afraid Amora wants you. Actually, she wants everyone to go downstairs. She's going to tell us the big surprise."

"Okay everyone, this is the big surprise: You're all getting married today!" Everyone stared at Amora, clearly not excited. She beamed at them. "Come on! You're going to have to be together for a year, might as well be okay with it."

Dean spoke up. "We are okay with it, we just aren't happy and excited about it."

"Speak for yourself," whispered Romilda Vane, looking sideways at George, while he looked astounded.

"So when are we supposed to be ready?" The always practical Hermione asked. "Well we're leaving right now, so no time to change!" This immediately raised protests.

"I am NOT getting married in my pajamas!" Katie, Parvati, Susan, Romilda, and Demelza all said in unison.

"All right, all right, go get changed." All of the girls rushed upstairs, except for Luna, who was already in a dress, Millicent, who didn't seem to care, and Ginny who walked slowly and despondently, because she didn't really care either. Hermione decided to go upstairs with Ginny and help her.

* * *

While Ginny showered, Hermione put on some simple, pretty make up, because she figured this would make the papers and she wanted to at least look presentable. She did her hair up in a bun.

"Knock knock," called Seamus from outside the door, as Ginny came out of the bathroom in a simple right-above-the-knee green strapless dress that made her hair pop and her eyes twinkle. "Whoa," whispered Seamus. "You-you-you-uhh," he stammered.

"She does look great, doesn't she Seamus?" Hermione said.

"Mhm." Seamus replied, and gulped audibly. He took his clothes and ran in the shower. Hermione and Ginny decided to go to Hermione's room, to give Seamus space, since Draco had already showered. There, Hermione tied Ginny's hair into loose braids and put on little hints of soft green eye shadow. She looked quite beautiful. That was before she started to cry.

"Oh Hermione, I wanted to look like this for Harry." She wailed.

"Now, don't ruin your makeup." Hermione chided softly while patting her on the back.

"How insensible of you." Draco said behind her, with a smirk on his face. He knelt next to Ginny's chair. "Weaslette, it's going to be all right. You'll have Granger and your stupid brother here for you. It's only a year. You'll be fine. Don't ruin your pretty makeup."

With that, he stood up and walked out of the room. "Did he just try to comfort me?" Ginny asked her tears all dried up from astonishment. Who was this, and where was the real Draco Malfoy?

* * *

Three hours later, everyone was assembled downstairs. All of the girls were in dresses and the boys in shirts and ties. They were all looking at a very disgruntled Amora who was ranting about punctuality. "I should not have had to wait THREE HOURS for you to simply make yourselves decent." She fumed.

"Well, you didn't exactly give us a time when we should be ready," said Ginny.

"IT DOESN'T MATTER!" You could hear a pin drop. Amora was usually so cheerful and happy. "The car has been waiting for us. We will now depart." She said, quickly lapsing back into calmness. They all filed out of the house, the enchantments that kept them trapped temporarily lifted. They all slowly got in the car, but George lingered outside, looking every which way. He looked really strained, like he couldn't concentrate hard enough. "ARGH," he screamed, then made a run for it. Amora was too fast for him though. She conjured a rope and lassoed him into the car. "

I wouldn't advise for any of you to try anything like that." She said calmly.

The weddings were…interesting. Lavender couldn't even bring herself to look at Harry when she said 'I do', and they didn't kiss each other oon the cheek. Ginny burst out crying and Seamus kissed her on the forehead walked out at the kiss the bride part. Ron looked as bright as tomato throughout the whole thing, and when he leaned to give Parvati a kiss she slapped him across the face. Fred and Demelza giggled their way through the whole ceremony and Amora had to clear her throat for them to pull apart and stop kissing. George looked solemn and Romilda was fidgeting. When the priest said "you may kiss the bride" Romilda threw her arms around George's shoulders and kissed him full on the lips. Katie burst into tears when that happened and ran out of the room, George hot on her heels. Romilda screamed, "Baby, where are you going?" Dean and Luna were the most collected couple by far. They said their I dos and Dean simply kissed Luna's hand. Throughout their whole wedding, Marcus had to hold Katie upright and lead her back to her seat, since she couldn't see from the tears in her eyes. Ritchie and Susan stared shyly at each other and their kiss was like a first date goodnight kiss. Millicent and Zabini argued and interrupted the priest and in the end, Millicent punched Zabini in the face, which would have been amusing, except everyone felt awful.

Then the time came for Malfoy and Hermione. They both walked to take their places next to the priest. Malfoy had a foul look on his face, and Hermione looked determined. She was trying to convince herself that everything would turn out all right. Draco on the other hand, was furious. Sure, he had discovered that Granger could clean up pretty nicely, but she was still Muggleborn. He had been raised to marry a Pureblood. He wanted to marry someone with wealth, power and status. He wanted to marry someone he could flaunt to his friends. But no, he was stuck with , since he had to be married to her, couldn't he have his fun? He was going to keep her on her toes, on the edge of her seat. He would play.

While Draco was musing Hermione examined his face. What she saw there ignited a craving to understand. What almost no one knew about her, was that she had asked Professor Dumbledore to teach her the basics of Legilimency. With much practice, she had become quite good at it, but used it only when she needed to. She deemed this one of those moments. As she poked and prodded at the corners of Draco's mind, she was shocked to find out that Malfoy planned to play around with her feelings. However, she soon met a wall of resistance, and looking over at Malfoy, she saw him giving her a look of pure hatred. Two can play this game, she said to herself. The priest went through the motions quickly. Malfoy spat out his "I do" and Hermione said hers emotionlessly. The moment of truth came. You may kiss the bride. Draco grabbed Hermione around the waist and pulled her towards him. He slowly leaned down while looking straight in her eyes. He couldn't help but notice that they held a mischievous twinkle. She closed the gap in between them, which he was not expecting. Their lips worked against each others, a battle for power, a kind of game they were playing. They had both expected the other to pull away rather quickly, but now neither wanted to give in. They stayed locked in an embrace, getting deeper into that hateful, passionate kiss. Hermione couldn't help but feel shivers where Draco's hands were resting, basking in his warmth and yet feeling completely disgusted all at the same time. Draco wondered at how soft Hermione felt, how good she smelled, and how much he despised her. Amora cleared her throat and they leaped away from each other. Draco stared at Hermione accusingly. She shrugged at him. She turned to look at their 'audience'. Ron had his head in his hands, Harry looked murderous and everyone else's jaws were hitting the floor. "Well, we can all head back to your home now."

* * *

The couples walked into their living room and stopped in their tracks. Their families were all here.

"You all get a joint reception!" Amora said happily. Everyone immediately ran to their families and hugged them and kissed them. Ginny was hugging Mrs. Weasley tightly and crying while Mr. Weasley looked on, completely bewildered. Hermione saw Harry standing awkwardly by himself, not knowing what to do. She took his hand and started leading him towards her mum and dad. Suddenly Draco was standing right in front of them, and he wrenched Hermione's hand from Harry's and held it in his own.

"Don't touch my wife." He spat at Harry.

"Let me go, Malfoy!" Hermione protested, while he smirked.

"I will not, _Malfoy." _It then struck Hermione that she was really Mrs. Draco Malfoy. "Has quite an effect on you, doesn't it?" Draco whispered in her ear.

Harry pushed him away. "Shove off, Malfoy." He said forcefully. "She's my wife. She needs to meet my parents, and I her's. Not you. It really does suck not to have a family, doesn't it?" Malfoy shot back.

A sound like a whip cracked through the room. Draco was holding his cheek. Hermione had lost her temper and struck him across the face. He shot her a look of pure hatred and ran up the stairs. She saw his parents looking at her venomously. Everyone in the room was staring at her and Harry. She pretended like nothing happened and took Harry's hand. They talked to her parents for a bit, and then went to talk to the Weasleys. Hermione couldn't help but wonder at what Draco was doing. She didn't feel one bit sorry, but she did think they started off at the wrong foot. It wasn't her fault, though. Of all people, why did she have to get paired with Malfoy? Why did she have to carry his name? This year was going to be pure hell, and Hermione couldn't help but be scared.

**A/N: Hope you liked it! Pretty please review, or otherwise I won't know what you think!**


	3. Of Love and Weeping

**A/N: Hello All! I hope you enjoyed the last chapter. Thank you SO much for your support and your reviews. I'd like to thank: Aurore Goddess of Dawn, black moon inu, bluestriker666, catwoman4333, itoldyouso2718, Kahlan Lazuli, vampeen, x-hermalfoy, yellowlikethesun9628, and zozoissoocool for subscribing! Also, thank you to pinpin95, divdiv, ixlikexsumxone, bluestriker666, nature love 95, MrsSnape2u, and itoldyouso2718 for reviewing. I am also honored to have been favorited by divdiv, ixlikexsumxone, Kahlan Lazuli, nature love 95, yellowlikethesun9628, and zozoissoocool! LOVE YOU ALL! I love everyone who's read my story, regardless of whether or not they've subscribed, favorited or reviewed!**

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Chapter 3- Of Love and Weeping

Hermione was wary of going back upstairs. All the families had now left, and the last of all the couples had trickled to their rooms. Draco hadn't been downstairs since their little exhibition. He hadn't even come down to say to goodbye to his parents. They had spent the rest of the evening talking to the Zabini's and giving Hermione dirty looks. She had to go to sleep at some point, though, so she figured it was now or never. She walked up the steps and hesitantly knocked on the door. Hearing no response, she opened the door. She cautiously tiptoed in, thinking that maybe Draco was asleep, since all the lights were off. Draco was laying back on his bed, eyes closed, seemingly asleep. She couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Hermione went to wash her face, brush her teeth and change into comfortable pajamas. She made sure not to make any noise as she climbed into her bed.

Hermione closed her eyes and tried to let sleep take over. Her mind was racing, though, and she wasn't feeling too happy. She couldn't believe that she was really Mrs.—

"Well, you had better believe it." She heard Draco's voice say. Hermione jumped up from her bed and stared at him, his chin propped up on his hand.

"OH! I didn't realize you were awake." She said.

"Obviously." He replied dryly.

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "Wait, what do you mean, 'you had better believe it'?" She questioned suspiciously.

"Look, you're just going to have to get used to being a wife, whether you want to or not. It's only a year." He replied calmly, while staring at the ceiling, ignoring her question.

Hermione only then remembered that he was a Legilimens too, and vowed to practice Occlumency whenever she wanted her thoughts to remain strictly with her.

"I won't be intruding your thoughts often; I honestly don't know why I did it just now," he said, sounding disgusted at himself. Hermione let that one slide by her.

"So we're going to cooperate, right?" Hermione asked him, not because she wanted to be closer to him, but because she didn't want this entire year to be a black mark on her life.

"Not after what you did today. Just make sure to keep your hands off of Potter and others. I plan on ignoring you for the remainder of the year. When I wake up tomorrow, it'll be as if you don't exist." Hermione just rolled her eyes at him.

"Good to know," she replied.

"What is it about Potter? Why did you defend him so fiercely?" Draco asked abruptly. He kept staring at the ceiling, cheeks burning. His curiosity was intense, but he couldn't believe he had let such feelings show. He was puzzled. Many girls had always wanted him, but no one had ever stood up for him like that. No one had ever shown him that type of affection. All of his friends had merely been followers, just going along with what he said, never really caring about him. Many of them resented him, as a matter of fact. He couldn't understand why Potter could have someone like that, and he couldn't.

"Because he's my brother and because I love him." She whispered softly, confused as to why he was asking, and thinking that it had been quite obvious. Draco turned so his back was to her, and stayed awake the whole night.

* * *

Hermione woke up quite late the next day, as if all of yesterday's events had thoroughly worn her out. They had, in truth. She was coming to realize that having an exciting life isn't always the best thing. Living with someone who hated her for an entire was going to be no easy feat. At least she had Ginny, Harry, and Ron to help her through it. They were going through so much as well, though, that it seemed like they wouldn't even be able to help each other. She rose slowly, seeing as there was no rush. She was stuck here for a year; there was nothing waiting for her. She looked over at Draco's bed, noticing it was empty; she sat up but didn't feel like leaving the warmth of her bed. Quite suddenly, her door flung open and there stood Harry. He had a cup of tea and a plate of toast on a tray, which he set on the bedside table. Once he'd done that, he threw himself on the bed next to her.

"Good morning to you." Hermione laughed.

He grinned at her and said, "Good morning, love." Hermione tucked into her breakfast.

"You know, if your husband wasn't Malfoy, I'd be really disgusted to lie on your bed." Hermione almost spit out her tea.

"What are you on about? I'm sure none of the other couples have… y'know, done anything," she said.

Harry just looked at her over the top of his glasses and laughed. "Yeah right," he whispered under his breath.

Hermione just looked at him and shook her head. She had to admit she was surprised at his composure. Ginny seemed to be much more upset about these arrangements than he was.

"Harry, aren't you in the least bit sad that you had to marry Lavender instead of Ginny?" Harry looked at her knowingly.

"Of course I am, but I choose to play with the cards life has dealt me. Maybe this year will spur me and Gin into action and we'll come to our senses and get married ourselves." Hermione just ran her hands through his hair. That had always been immensely comforting to him. She knew that Harry was dying inside. He was just staying strong to help Ginny, Ron, and her.

Hermione finished her breakfast and went downstairs with Harry to hang out with Ron and Ginny. Ginny sat on one side of Hermione with her head on her shoulder and Harry on the other side, holding her hand. Ron sat in front of the three of them. They were all pretty sad company, but it was better than being alone. Ron was trying to be civil with Parvati, but she kept shutting herself in the bathroom and sobbing for hours. Ginny and Seamus couldn't be in the same room together for more than 5 minutes. Harry was kind to Lavender, but they didn't really have much in common and couldn't sustain conversation. Hermione and Draco, well, they just weren't even trying to get along. Hermione looked around the room, searching for her husband. She saw him nowhere.

The house was quite vast, and she hadn't done any exploring, so she decided to look around. She walked out of the common room and down a corridor lined with endless rooms. There were rooms with Muggle exercise machines, and arcade machines. There was a room full with moving paintings that had quite a cacophony stirred up, and another with thousands of shelves of books, filled with pure silence. She heard weird animal sounds coming from a room to the left. When she walked in she discovered ten cages and tanks with the names of all the couples. Each case contained a magical creature.

The Potters' was a baby Phoenix, The Finnigans' was a Griffin, Mr. and Mrs. Ron Weasley's was a Hippogriff, Mr. and Mrs Fred Weasley's was an Imp, Mr. and Mrs. George Weasley was a Pixie, The Thomas' was a Grindylow, The Belby's was a Salamander, The Cootes' was a Puffskein, and The Zabini's was a Redcap. Hermione walked up to the last cage. Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy. Their creature was a beautiful little fairy sleeping peacefully, her small chest rising up and down. Hermione turned around only to realize that all of the creatures had fallen into a slumber. She could hear a piano softly from down the hall.

She followed the music to find a door ajar. She peered inside, seeing a bright room with all the instruments they could want. There were several violins, violas, cellos and basses, flutes, oboes, trumpets and trombones, cymbals, triangles, clarinet, French horns; basically everything they could need. And there, in the middle of it all sat none other than Draco Malfoy at the piano. His hands were gently moving over the keys. He was playing beautifully and intensely. Hermione felt something drawing her towards the piano, and it was as if she couldn't make her feet stop. The music picked up and became frantic and pleading and desperate, and Hermione Granger-no, Hermione Malfoy- couldn't stop her feet from moving.

Draco stopped abruptly and laid his head on his hands. The spell was broken. His shoulders trembled but he didn't make a sound. Hermione laid her hand on his shoulder, which caused him to scramble out of the bench.

"Here to have a nice laugh at me, yeah?" he said bitterly as he wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. His wife looked back at him, eyes brimming with compassion.

"Couldn't you just leave?" he said, as his eyes filled up again. He turned around and silently begged her to just leave him be. He felt terribly weak, letting her see him cry. He could only imagine that she was thinking he was pathetic. Ever since the war had ended, Draco had sat at the piano every morning and played, to make himself feel better. More often than not, he shed a few tears, as he remembered all the terrible things he'd done and regretted. It had become therapeutic, but no one had ever caught him at it. Why did it have to be Granger of all people? He was shocked to feel her arms slide around his middle from behind and hold him tight.

Hermione didn't really know why she was doing it, except that she felt horrible pity. He leaped back from her, his face screwed up in disgust. Hermione couldn't help but feel a tiny sting at his rebuke of her kindness.

"What are you doing?" he asked, haltingly.

"I-I honestly don't know," she replied and turned to leave the room. He caught her hand and pulled her to face him, looking down all the while.

"I-I-I," he tried to say, but lost his voice to tears again. He just slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her flush against his chest. Hermione immediately tensed up and just held her arms at her side. Slowly, she relaxed and put her arms around him and hugged him fiercely. If asked later on, neither of them could ever recall how long they held each other. As they did, Hermione realized why she had hugged him first. She realized that growing up with parents who were Death Eaters must not have been easy and that being an only child could be lonely, as Hermione had experienced herself. She realized that Draco had grown up much too soon and had been forced to do things he didn't want to. He had been forced into becoming a man, when what he really wanted was to be free of obligation. What seemed like ages later, Draco's tears dried up and he reluctantly pulled himself away from her? It had felt so good to just hold her, and to let her hold him. He looked straight into her eyes and saw understanding, sadness and….pity?

"Look, Granger. I honestly don't need your pity. I know you're my "wife", but don't you ever touch me again. I don't touch Mudbloods and I don't interact with them, so, hell, don't even talk to me. My life was thrown to hell when I found out you were my match. Think about all those years at Hogwarts that I made you miserable and now I have live with you. Live with you! Share a room! Can you imagine how disgusted I feel in the mornings when I wake up and see you? Merlin, they couldn't have found me a better hell. So just stay away from me, because I just don't know what I might do," he spat venomously and fled the room, presumably for good.

Hermione turned to watch him, completely bewildered. She felt she had done the right thing. She could never go right with Draco Malfoy. She hated his name, but most of all she hated that it was her name now. She hated his existence, but now their lives were intertwined. Her life would be forever stained by this experience. She crumpled to the floor and cried for herself now. Life was going to be impossibly difficult for an entire year. It was going to be pure torture and hurt. She would never get along with her stupid excuse for a husband. She cried and cried and cursed his name.

Hours later, she heard footsteps outside the door. She tried to compose herself but it was much too hard. She looked up to find Ron standing there.

"Why are you crying? I've been looking everywhere for you," he asked hurriedly as he sat down across from her.

"You would think me stupid, if I told you," she replied shakily.

"Hermione, we're all in very difficult situations right now, and we all need each other," he said, gently.

Hermione just burst into sobs. "Oh 'Mione," he whispered as he moved closer to her and wrapped her up in his arms.

Hermione forgave Ron then, because she would need him throughout this whole year, and because he had proven he was sorry. She hadn't been held by him in so long, and it felt so good. They sat together on the floor, Ron slowly rocking her, until Hermione cried no more.

"Hermione, I want to apologize-" She put her finger over his lips, and stared in his eyes. She could find all she needed to know right there. They could move on, and they could be friends. She wanted no more from Ron. She made to get up and leave, but he grabbed her tighter and tilted her chin up. "I love you," he said. She could do nothing but stare, as he slowly brought his lips to meet hers in a gentle kiss. No sooner had their lips touched than Hermione found herself being whipped by a fierce wind and landing with a thud at the foot of Draco's bed. He jumped up, startled.

"How in Merlin's beard did you get here? And where have you been?" he asked, as if his previous anger had suddenly vanished.

"I don't know. I was with Ron and he…" she trailed off, embarrassed, for some reason, her cheeks burning.

"He what?" Draco asked forcefully.

"Well, he kissed me. Then I felt wind coming from everywhere and I landed here," she said all in one breath. "

He kissed you. Is it not clear that you are MY wife?" he snapped.

Hermione stared at him. "It's not like you care about me," she countered. He pulled her up roughly from the floor. "You're my wife. You will not go around kissing other people's husbands."

She tried to shake his hands away, but he was too strong.

"Do you really want to know where I've been?" He kept looking at her steadily.

"I've been crying my eyes out because I have a miserable excuse for a husband. I've been crying because now the filthiness of Malfoy stains my name. God help me, I've been crying because I hate you like I've never hated anyone, but yet I'm stuck with you. You're the bane of my existence. I will never be happy, because you're always in the way. We left Hogwarts and finally you couldn't torment me anymore. I hadn't seen you in years. So of course, fate had to find a way to throw us back together. I'm torn apart and it's all your fault. Why can't you just let me live? Why don't I have the right to be happy? Why do you haunt me? Draco Malfoy, I will make your life a living hell. Just you wait; you'll be scared of your shadow soon enough."

Draco's mouth was wide open. He'd never seen Hermione in such a rage. Her livid expressipn made her somehow beautiful. She was the image of perfection, almost like an illusion. He was transfixed; she was a sight to behold. But since Draco is a Malfoy, he quickly gathered his wits. As he opened his mouth to say something, Hermione's face took on a maniacal look.

"What's the matter, Malfoy? On your guard now," she said, and turned to walk away, before doing something that was at the tip of her fingers, something she would regret.

"You filth, you think you intimidate me?" Hermione whipped around, not knowing what came over her, and did something she would go on to regret for her entire life.

"CRUCIO!"

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**A/N: Cliffhanger! Pretty please review! I really like to know what you think about the way the story is going and all. I forgot the quote of the week for last week so here goes.**

**"Midas is king and he holds me so tight. And turns me to gold in the sunlight."- Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up) by Florence + The Machine.**

**"So I left, **  
**That is it.**  
**That's my life,**  
**Nothing is sacred.**  
**I don't keep friends,**  
**I keep acquainted,**  
**I'm not a prophet,**  
**But I'm here to profit.**

**That's all,**  
**I'm gone!**  
**That's my life,**  
**Nothing is sacred.**  
**I don't fall in love,**  
**I just fake it.**  
**I don't fall in love.**  
**I don't fall in love." - At Least I'm Not As Sad As I Used To Be by Fun. **


	4. Of Love and Understanding

**A/N: Hello all! I hope you don't all hate me for the cliffhanger! As always, I'd like to thank the following for, reviewing, favoriting, or subscribing: Kei's-Girl, kimbclar, snape's-doe-513, unicorngirl14, anouchkamissdodo, TheLovelySarcastic, loukritia, Briana4-91, swonderful2, bunny08, AliceMary Whitlock Cullen-Hale, nature love 95, bluestriker666, pinpin95, unicorngirl14. Thank you all so much! I love you! I hope everyone enjoys the chapter!**

**PS: There's going to be a lot more of other couples, and switching perspectives from now on. Hope you don't mind!**

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Hermione thought it would take a lifetime to get the image out of her head. Draco Malfoy, writhing in pain at her feet. He'd recovered quickly; her spelll hadn't been potent enough. But she knew it hurt regardless. Guilt consumed her; she felt like a monster. Immediately after casting the spell, she had felt bathed in shame. She ran out of the room, down the staircase, and kept descending until she came to a corridor lined with rooms and ran into the nearest one. There was a bathroom adjoining it and she quickly ran inside and lost her dinner. Before checking anything or looking around the room, Hermione had locked the door. Now, 4 days after, she was still hiding out in this room. As if the house knew, food had appeared every day so she wouldn't starve. Hermione had only been able to pick at it, her appetite completely lost.

She had heard the panicked voices of Harry, Ron, and Ginny calling out to her over the four days. She had even heard Ginny sobbing. It felt horrible to make them so miserable, but she couldn't face them. She was a monster. Hermione had never thought she would be capable of crying so much. It was all she had done over these four days. Cry, and then cry some more. She kept looking at her hands and not believing what they'd done. She hadn't even been able to touch her wand for the past four days. She couldn't imagine how she and Draco would ever be able to get along after this. Hermione wanted so badly to show her face and apologize, but she was also so scared. Her guilt and sadness consumed her entirely. Today was the 4th day and Hermione's prospects weren't any better. Sometime after lunch, Hermione looked up to see the doorknob turning. She frantically tried to recall if she had locked it but then remembered that earlier she had opened the door for a second to peer out and had forgotten to lock it again.

She quickly ran into the bathroom and locked the door. No matter who it was, she wasn't ready to see them.

* * *

Draco had found it unbelievable that Granger had it in her. Her Cruciatus curse had actually been somewhat successful. That usually took loads of practice and he knew for a fact she hadn't had any. That simple truth lead him to believe that she must have had a lot of bottled up hate for him inside her. Even though she had crossed a line, for some reason, Draco couldn't say he was particularly angry at her. As a matter of fact, he now craved to not be hated by her any more. Almost immediately after recovering, he had resolved that he would be nice to her, and try to get along with her. Most people would think it very backwards of him, but he just couldn't explain it. He supposed he simply hated being hated.

Hermione, however, had made it very difficult. It was as if she had completely disappeared off the face of the earth. Right after she had cursed him, she had run from the room, and that was the last time anyone had seen her. They all knew she had to be in the house, but it became obvious, after 4 days of searching, that she was very well hidden. Potter, Weasley, and Weaslette had looked every where for her but it was now four days and they still hadn't found her. Yesterday, the third day of her being lost, he had seen, at different moments, all three of her friends doing quite peculiar things, because of their need for her. He had walked into his room to find Ginny picking up Hermione's things and making her bed while talking to the air, it seemed. Upon listening closely, Draco realized that she was chastising Hermione, who, obviously, wasn't there. Later, he had walked by the library to see Weasley crying. After that, he had seen Potter punching the kitchen appliances. Needless to say, it was time to find Hermione. The next day, after lunch, Draco set out to find her. He looked all over until finding a corridor in the basement completely lined with rooms. He saw light coming from under the door the farthest away from the staircase. Careful not to make much noise, he crept down the hall. He opened the door, and walked inside. The room appeared deserted, but he could see there was a plate with uneaten food. Someone had been here. It had to be her.

* * *

Harry walked into the kitchen to make himself a sandwich. He felt like he had been indulging in food more than usual, but since they were allowed to fly around the perimeter of the house, he was still burning everything off. He hadn't been able to talk to his best friend properly since they had moved here, but he had to be happy that at least they were in closer proximity. It was a shame that it had to be under such circumstances. Finishing his meal, he went back upstairs and picked up a book. Maybe if Hermione hadn't been hiding she would have beamed at him for reading.

Even after four days, none of them had succeeded in finding her. He figured she would reappear voluntarily soon enough, but Hermione could be quite stubborn when she wanted to be. He wasn't even quite sure why she was hiding. All Malfoy had said was they'd had a disagreement and she had left in a hurry before he could catch her. Ron had nearly broken Malfoy in two but Parvati, somehow, had a calming power when it came to Ron. They rarely talked, but Parvati had been sitting there, and the minute Ron had taken a step towards Malfoy, she had told him, "you'll regret that." Ron had left without putting up a fight. Harry was quite surprised; not even Hermione's words had been that effective when it came to Ron's anger. It was really quite uncommon.

Harry heard the lock turn and the door opened to reveal Lavender. She walked to the opposite side of the bed and climbed in, laying her head on Harry's shoulder. Harry started to move away in surprise, but she pulled on his shirt.

"Look, Harry. I've been meaning to talk to you. I think we both need someone through all of this. I'm not in love with you, and you're not in love with me, but we have to be each other's spouses for a whole year. I want to be there to help you, Harry. Just to help." She said all of this without once looking at him, embarrassed but determined.

Harry nodded his head. He understood where she was coming from, and even though she had acted quite crazily while she and Ron dated, Harry had always thought Lavender a nice girl. He wanted to be her friend. It made no sense for them to be miserable for a whole year. They would be friends. "Let's be friends?" He asked her, squeezing her hand. Lavender squeezed back and under the light shining from their window, they sat content as friends.

* * *

Ron sat in the music room, quietly strumming on a guitar. He had noticed that this room was largely undiscovered by all of the couples, and he didn't think anyone but him and Hermione knew where it was. He really rather wished she'd come out of hiding. Even though they had spent many months apart, he'd grown quite used to waking up and her being there, and now, he acutely felt her absence. He wasn't quite sure what had happened or why she'd run away, but he figured she would return soon, eventually. When Malfoy had explained the situation, he had very nearly attacked him. Somehow, Parvati had stopped him. He didn't know why or how. He'd never been particularly close to Parvati, but she had an intense calming effect on him.

Since then, Ron and Parvati had actually started to get along. It had been fun. They actually had a lot more things in common then he could have ever expected, and she was really a rather lovely girl. Ron put the guitar down, deciding to go upstairs. He got himself a soda and iced tea for Parvati. He didn't see her anywhere in the kitchen so he went upstairs. Stopping at their door, he heard sobbing from inside. Parvati had been very upset the first couple of days, but she had been feeling much better lately and he couldn't think of anything that would make her so upset.

He opened the door, and put the drinks down on a table. Parvati turned to look at him, wiping at her cheeks.

"Oh, Ron. Hello," she said, trying to hide the fact that she'd been crying.

"What's wrong?" He asked her patiently.

"Wrong? I don't know what you mean. There's nothing wrong," she told him, attempting to look indignant.

"Come on Parvati. I know I'm thick but not really." He looked at the bed and saw a letter.

"A letter? Is that what got you upset?" He asked again.

"I'm not upset, Ron. Now, I'd kindly ask you to stop pestering me with questions," she told him, picking up the letter and hastily stuffing it into a cabinet. Ron walked over to the cabinet, and took out the letter. Parvati reached towards him and tried to get it but he simply walked farther away from her.

Finally, when he was done with the letter, he looked at Parvati, bewildered, and asked:"Your sister married Justin Finch-Fletchley, and you're upset? He has been an arrogant prat before, but he's quite successful nowadays. He's a good, kind hearted bloke. It seems like she loves him. Why are you upset?" Parvati said nothing, simply stood there staring at him. Suddenly, she picked a book at flung it at him. Ron dodged and looked at her like she was crazy. That only enraged her more. She looked around for something else to throw at him. Seeing a pen holder, she threw that, and it came dangerously close to his head. They continued like this for a while, until finally she had advanced so far towards him that he was standing against the door.

She stepped closer to him and he raised his arms in a gesture of innocence. Taking the opportunity, she pinned his arms against the door. Ron was quite surprised at her strength. He tried to wriggle free to no avail. She looked him right in the eye. "I'm upset because Padma gets to be happy and I don't. I'm wasting a year here with you. She gets to be with the love of her life. She had a beautiful white wedding. They're honeymooning in Hawaii. Her life is perfect; my life is in ruins. Is the picture clearer now?" Her voice broke as she finished her rant, and quite suddenly it seemed like her body buckled under the pressure. Ron didn't anticipate her fall, and in him reaching for her, they both fell to the ground. He scooped her up and carried her to the bed. He pulled the covers over her, and slipped in next to her. Placing his arm around her waist and snuggling up behind her, he whispered in her ear. "I can't make any of those things better, but I'll hold you. I'll hold you through the bad and good times. That's a promise." Parvati continued to sob, but now she wasn't so sure that it was from sadness.

* * *

Ginny was flying around the perimeter of the house, feeling quite dejected. Hermione still hadn't been found, and Ginny really needed her at the moment. Ron was her brother, and while she could talk to him, his mind always seemed to wander. He was always so preoccupied, so worried about elsewhere. He could never really focus on how she was feeling, and she resented that, even though she knew she shouldn't. Harry had become quite the recluse himself, but frankly, Ginny couldn't even look at him without wanting to cry. Every time she saw him, she wanted to punch herself for not taking the chance sooner, and being assertive. Hell, had she known this would happen, she would've proposed to Harry herself. Now it was too late, and they were stuck like this for a year. The ministry really did know how to botch things up. What if Harry fell in love with Lavender and decided he didn't even want her? There were too many what ifs for her mind to process. She heard someone flying behind her and turned to look. It was Seamus. He looked quite purposeful, as if he knew exactly what he was going to say and how. "Ginny," he said, looking at her intently. "I made you something. You don't have to accept it. I realize that this year will be quite hard for the two of us. We're both in love with other people. I think we should still be friends." He finished his little speech. Embarrassed, he rummaged through his pockets until he found what he was looking for. Upon handing it to Ginny, he flew hurriedly away, leaving her to stare at his retreating form. Carefully, she unwrapped the package. Inside was a beautiful leather bracelet. Seamus had carved the words 'friend' in many different languages all over it and in the middle there was only one word.

_Smile._

* * *

**A/N: This ****was kind of a sweet chapter after the intensity of the last one. Hope you liked it! Please review! **

**Quote of the week: "Hours pass, and she still counts the minutes that I'm not there. I swear I didn't mean for it to feel like this, like every inch of me is bruised."-Bruised by Jack's Mannequin.**


	5. Of Love and Decisions

A/N: HELLO ALL! So, as always, I would like to thank the following for subscribing, reviewing, or favoriting: alwaysthere2, blackleg, crazychick99, liggie, ceod13, jules critic, totalSMfan, Maybe I'm Not Okay, Your Dose of Poison, TwinsConspiracy, iamagemm, jeweljuly, malcom999, purpledaizi626, edwardsoneandonlylove, Beautiful-Liar 13, pinpin95, bigmommak, bluestriker666. THANK YOU SO MUCH! Thank you to everyone who has kept reading! School's in session, so my updating will be more sporadic, unfortunately. I apologize in advance for the wait.

**Hope you enjoy!**

**PS: I realize this is a bit short. I'm working on adding stuff to my chapters.**

* * *

Draco stepped closer to the door, until finally he heard the sobbing stop. He thought that she had realized he was inside the room, but then he heard retching sounds and became worried. He waited a second before he silently cast Alohomora. Quietly, the door opened and there she stood, in all her radiance. Even though he didn't think she'd taken very good care of herself over these past couple of days, seeing her was still comforting. Slowly, she started sobbing uncontrollably.

"Don't cry," he whispered. That only seemed to make her cry harder. She walked out into the room, and sat on the floor.

Finally sobering up, she said, "I'm so sorry. More than you'll ever know."

He sat down beside her. "Oh, I know!" Seeing her shocked face, he amended it was only a joke. "Well, believe it or not, I'm not angry. I was being unreasonable. We're both under stress. I pushed your buttons, and you simply pushed back."

Hermione laughed snarkily. "I guess that's what a little Death Eater training will teach you. Torturing someone is only pushing their buttons."

Draco turned away from her, visibly hurt. Hermione stole a glance at him. He looked like he hadn't slept much. She couldn't really believe he had been looking for her, and she imagined that finding her had been a mere accident.

"There I go, being cruel again. I'm sorry. I truly am. I'd like for us to get along," she offered.

"We'll never get along if you continue to bring up my past, and I keep having disdain for your tainted blood."

She looked at him, surprised. "I thought you said that didn't matter to you anymore?"

He smirked. "Well maybe I lied. Maybe I lied about everything. Maybe I'm luring you into a false sense of security so I can kill you tonight while you sleep. Maybe, maybe. Maybe I just want you to trust to me, maybe I want what you want. But maybe not." Hermione wasn't surprised he wanted to play that game. What she had done was out of line, and she knew that if their roles were reversed, she wouldn't have very warm feelings towards him. As a matter of fact, she had never expected for him to forgive her. Yet then he'd said it was okay and she had gotten her hopes up. Now she simply wanted to slap him.

"You aren't going to kill me. You're too eager to find out my motivations."

His eyes flashed briefly up to her face. "Right you are. You've got the strength to defend yourself, and then the compassion to feel bad. You're a remarkable witch, really, Hermione. I'm proposing a fresh start. I don't call you Mudblood; you don't call me Death Eater. Who knows, maybe we'll actually end up friends." His proposition was sound, and Hermione was determined to make things right.

She nodded her agreement, earning herself a trademark smirk.

"Now can we please go to bed? I'm all worn out from all of this searching," he complained.

"Yeah alright. Let's get to bed."

* * *

The next morning found Lavender and Seamus hiding away in the attic.

"Didn't quite think it'd end up being like this, eh?" Seamus asked. Lavender looked out the tiny window, watching Ginny fly. It seemed like she did it constantly. To get out of the house, to think, to escape. Lavender wasn't quite sure; her and Ginny had never been friends.

"No, I really didn't. I thought by this time, we'd be married," she laughed. He took her hand and ran his thumb along her fingers. His touch was so familiar, yet so electrifying.

"Well, we are married," he started.

"Just not to each other," she completed. Every day, for a small stretch of time, they escaped to the attic. She loved his warmth, and how his eyes seem to light up especially for her. He loved her presence, and how her laugh echoed of the walls. They couldn't live without each other, yet the Ministry was denying them their love. Seamus pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

"We'll make things right," he said, caressing her cheek.

"We'll get out of here and get married and have many children," Lavender sighed, hopeful.

"Mrs. Finnigan, be mine."

"Mr. Finnigan, I am entirely yours."

* * *

Harry had just picked his broom and alighted when he saw her. Her red hair was flying in the wind, this way and that. Her strong arms were gripping the broom, and she was flying at quite a high speed. Since this marriage law had been enacted, she seemed to avoid looking him in the eye. He loved her, still, more than ever. The yearning for her was constantly there, even when she was out of sight. Harry thought about her more frequently than he thought about himself. He couldn't help but stare at her hair, so bright in the sunlight. He started to fly towards her, determined to make her talk to him. They were in love, for goodness sake, and they should talk. When he was about to say her name, she seemed to back away from something unseen, and suddenly her broom touched his. They both jolted and quite quickly, lost control of their brooms.

"Harry! What just happened?" She asked panicked. They were both holding their brooms and hanging vertically in the air.

"Ginny just try to climb back on," he told her calmly.

"I can't! I'm not wearing any gloves," she screamed, frantic. Slowly, her hands began to slip, and she started to fall. Harry tried reaching down for her but every time he tried his hand slid a little more. Ginny let out a scream as she finally couldn't hold on anymore and started free falling towards the grass. Harry struggled to climb on, and once he finally did, he dove towards her. A second before her head hit the ground, he caught her in his arms. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing, slow. She had fainted. Harry carried her back inside the house, past everyone who was staring at them and up to him and Lavender's bedroom. He laid her on the bed, and began to sob, finally letting out all he was feeling.

* * *

Ron woke up to someone shaking his shoulder. He opened his eyes to see Parvati and all her tousled hair. If possible she looked even more beautiful now. Her eyes were panicked and as he turned to look at the door, his breath caught. He ran to _her_ and held _her_ as close as possible. God he had missed her, her smell, and her warmth. She didn't seem to reciprocate his embrace and so he let go. She opened her mouth to speak but seemed out of breath.

"I-you- Parvati-I," she tried. She took a deep breath and said, "Well I suppose I deserve it." With that, Hermione turned and walked out the door. Ron could see her shoulders shaking. He didn't want to hurt her. He still loved her, but there was a part of him that also loved Parvati. Parvati, seeing how upset he was, came up behind him and hugged him tightly. He stroked her arm, and let slip a tear that he had been holding in far too long.

* * *

Fred woke up with Demelza's head on his chest. She always smelled so good, and she was so soft. During their years at Hogwarts, Fred had always had a huge thing for Angelina, but their relationship had fizzled out. Demelza was so much better of a match for him, and he was quite surprised the Ministry had to tell him that. He had known her for quite some time but had never seen her that way. She was lovely, with her vibrant blue eyes, and winning smile. She could coerce him into anything with that smile. He had to admit, being Demelza's husband had been quite fun, and he thought that when this experiment ended, they would likely be the only couple to remain together. He heard her stirring in her sleep and kissed her forehead. Her eyes opened and she gave him that smile, that smile that could charm the pants off of anyone.

"I'm going to take a shower, alright?" She nodded her head, and so he got up and walked to the bathroom. He enjoyed his shower, the warm water relaxing him, making him feel better. Finally he stepped out, brushed his teeth and put on his clothes. He walked out of the bathroom to see Demelza sitting up on the bed wearing a little red lacy, well, _thing. _He gulped audibly, quite confused. Even though they had kissed quite passionately before, and even though everyone else in the house thought they were being intimate, they hadn't.

"Uhh, I don't recall you wearing that to bed," he said jokingly.

"And I was rather hoping you'd come out only in your towel," she pouted.

"Yeah I mean it'll be much more difficult now. Why don't we go down and have some breakfast?" She smiled at him.

"Oh, alright, let's go." She started walking towards the door, and it looked like she had every intention of opening it.

"Not in that!"Fred exclaimed.

"Well I can't really take it off unless it's served its purpose, now can I?" She asked, feigning puzzlement. Fred picked her up and led her to the bed while she giggled. Taking off his shirt, he said, "Well, alright, if you insist."

* * *

Luna walked into the greenhouse, relishing in the smell of all the plants. The greenhouse was the only place she could think nowadays. Dean made her quite happy, but sometimes she just needed space. Her painting had become deplorable, and she needed some inspiration. She thought all of the other couples were taking this situation quite harshly. It was only a year after all, and when they were done with this, it would seem quite funny. Perhaps. Hopefully. She suspected Nargles must have been whispering in their ears. Or maybe theliotypes, those brought on despair. It had been particularly hard for Luna to watch Ginny fall apart. They had always been friends, but had grown apart over the last couple of years. Luna had been traveling quite a bit, exploring all of the cultures of the world. It had become too hard to keep in contact with everyone. She walked along the aisles, touching all of the leaves, occasionally stopping to smell a flower. Hearing a noise behind her, she turned around. The door of the greenhouse seemed to yawn open, and in came Neville. Oh, Neville. He ran to embrace her, trailing kisses all over her face. She held his hand gently, and told him how much she loved him.

"Neville, there's something we need to talk about," she started. He looked at her sharply, worried, but nodded his head.

"I've decided I want to play the cards life has dealt me, and I want to give it a go with Dean," she said. Neville laughed his deep booming laugh.

"Oh, Luna, and for a second I was worried you were going to tell me something serious," he chuckled. Luna let go of his hand, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You don't think that's serious? How can I spell it out for you? Fate obviously wants me to give Dean a chance and I am going to," she said forcefully.

"Luna, you can't be serious," he pleaded.

"I am, quite so," she said, relenting, and holding his hand again. She brought it up to her lips and kissed it. She nuzzled his cheek and ran her fingers over his features.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"We were going to get married, and have lots of kids. We were going to live somewhere with lots of plants, with a yard for the kids to run in. We were going to travel together, be together, love each other," he gasped out, almost unable to breathe. She looked into his eyes, searching for something there. The spark they'd always had was still present, but she couldn't bring herself to love him like she used to. The door opened and

Dean popped his head in saying, "I thought I'd find you here." His eyes seemed to widen as he saw Neville.

"Neville!" He ran over and shook Neville's hand, patted him on back.

"What are you doing here? How've you been?" Neville seemed unable to look him in the eye.

"I've come to tend to the plants. I was hired. It'd be great if you guys could just step out, I wouldn't want to get you dirty," he said, faking a smile. Dean nodded his head and led Luna out of the room. They walked all the way to their room. Once inside the door, Luna turned and buried herself in Dean's arms, crying like she never had before.

* * *

**A/N: QUOTE OF THE WEEK **  
**" There's a ghost in my lungs and it sighs in my sleep. Wraps itself around my tongue as it softly speaks. Then it walks, it walks with my legs. To fall, to fall at your feet." I'm Not Calling You a Liar by Florence + The Machine  
**

**PRETTY PLEASE REVIEW!**


	6. Of Love and Indecency

**PLEASE READ 2ND PARAGRAPH OF AUTHOR's NOTE.**

**SO sorry for my absence. Life just does this thing were it hits me like a two ton truck. I also have this silly rule that I don't post a chapter unless I've got three completed ones waiting. So yeah. Sorry buds. Since it's been such a long time it's been hard to keep track of exactly who reviewed/subscribed/favorited, so here's a huge thank you to ALLL of you, you have no idea how much I appreciate you.**

**PS: Sorry if you get more than one alert, I was made privy to a mistake that I felt the need to fix. SO very sorry. I would also like to say (and please, please don't take this in a bad way) I do not NEED to update. I want, enjoy, adore, and look forward to updating. The truth of the matters is I have a life too, guys, and I'm trying to provide you this story in the steadiest manner ever, but life is not steady. Please leave do not leave me reviews saying I need to update. I will, and if I decide not to, I will tell you guys the story is abandoned. I'm sorry if any of you take this badly but I'm only being honest. **

**PPS: I do plan on carrying this story out, abandoment is not in the horizon, lovies!**

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Hermione woke up slowly, the bright sunlight streaming through their bedroom window. The only thing the room she'd been hiding in lacked was a proper, comfortable bed. Sleeping in her own bed would have been even better than the one in her and Draco's room, but after sleeping on the floor, it was more than enough. After four nights of the hard floor, sleeping in a bed was fantastic. She could almost feel her muscles unwinding, molding themselves to the soft mattress. She turned to see Draco, snoring gently in his sleep. After all these days, Hermione was no longer shocked when she woke up with Draco next to her. He still had his own bed, of course.

Hermione peered out the window. From up here, out of that room in the basement, she could actually see the clouds and the sky. She felt like a weight was lifted, like she was back to living her life, albeit in a house with semi-strangers. She had resolved to be a better person, and to try her best with all her friendships and her marriage while she was staying in this house. She felt peaceful now, with a goal. After days of the cramped room, she felt like just relaxing in her bed. She started humming softly under her breath; she always loved to hum in the mornings. She heard Draco tussling around on his bed. He pulled his covers over his head, sleepily saying "Will you stop that?" Hermione blushed and muttered an apology. Draco kept grumbling about already being awake. He roughly pulled the covers off and made to get up when Hermione emitted an ear splitting shriek.

Covering her eyes, she screamed, "PUT SOME CLOTHES ON."

Draco stood there, confused, looking down at his boxers, confused about why she was making such a fuss. He always slept like this.

"Go on," she said, gesturing wildly with her hands. Draco smirked slyly, thinking he could certainly have some fun with this. Instead of looking for clothes to put on, he started moving towards her. She recoiled and scooted to the far side of the bed. He took his time climbing onto the bed, but steadily moved towards her. He never once broke their eye contact. Quite soon, he was straddling her. Hermione closed her eyes, and covered her body with her hands. It wasn't that she'd never seen a boy indecent before, but this was Malfoy. They hated each other. Yes, he was nice to look at but there was nothing else there, no personality to keep a girl on her toes.

Hermione felt more than saw him leaning down and he whispered in her ear, "All up close and personal, huh?" Only then did she realize that he was just playing games with her. She slowly slid her hand down his back and upon landing on his bum, spanked him. He flinched and look at her, wide-eyed.

"What was that?" She smirked at him and moved her hands down his chest, all the way down his stomach and snapped the waistband of his boxers.

He suddenly turned serious and said, "All right that's enough." He started to move away from her when the door opened and they both froze. Ron popped his head in the door and Hermione was so startled that she made to get up and kicked Draco in a sensitive spot. He fell over the side of the bed, grimacing.

Ron stood at the door, dumbstruck. "Well I guess we've both found someone new, then," he said, partially regaining composure.

"It's not quite like that," she replied, but he was already leaving.

"Glad we got that settled!" He went to the door, turned to look at her, almost wistfully, and waved goodbye.

Hermione's world felt like it was crashing down. Ron waving goodbye at her made it somewhat final. They were done. They were through. She couldn't understand how he could be so calm. Her heart felt like it was tearing out of her chest. They were meant to be together. It had always been that way. She loved him and he loved her. She couldn't possibly understand why he didn't think he did. His confusion was carrying things a little too far. Maybe he didn't feel so sure now, but tomorrow he'd wake up and want her and only her. Because otherwise what else did she have to keep her going? Draco slowly got up and saw that Hermione was crying silently. He walked over to her, and wiped the tears off her cheeks. She looked at his hand in surprise. She hadn't even realized she was crying. He tentatively placed his arms around her, not wanting to come on too strong. Hermione, however, clung on to Draco like he was the only thing she had left, her lifeline. Draco held her tightly, and his boxers were long forgotten.

* * *

"_George there's something I have to tell you," Fred said, and George turned toward him. _

"_Yes?" _

"_Well, Demelza and I have decided to move. I can't work at the shop anymore," he confessed. _

_George laughed heartily. "Good joke, mate," he replied. _

"_I know it sounds crazy, and the shop really was once all I ever wanted. But now I have Demelza in my life, and George, I need her," Fred said, earnestly. _

"_What about me? We're twins. Don't we need each other too?"_

George woke up to someone shaking his shoulder. Groggily, he muttered a 'leave me alone', turning away from the hand. The dream he'd been having had spooked him. What if one day Fred left the shop? What would he do? The shaking persisted, and George reluctantly opened one eye.

"What do you want?" He growled at Romilda.

He had never liked her at school, but she had also never been this much of a nuisance. He would've rather been with Eloise Midgen than Romilda. She was a nagging, fussy, stupid girl, and he didn't think he could take living with her for a whole year. He had tried to talk to her as little as possible since this stupid experiment had started but she somehow always knew where to find him.

She smiled at him widely-god, he hated how she smiled- and said, "I made you coffee."

He was tempted to pour the drink on her, but thought that would be taking it a little too far. George sat up and snatched the coffee out of her hands, sniffing it warily.

She laughed at him, and said, "I'm not trying to kill you."

George noticed that what Romilda was wearing today could actually be called conservative. Usually she'd be wearing some frilly, lacy thing, trying to tempt him into god-knows-what.

"Honestly, George, what are you sniffing for? Love potions don't have scent," she pointed out.

"I work with them. They do, it's just very faint. Trust me." She only shrugged her shoulders. Finally, George put the mug to his lips, and quickly downed most of the coffee. He got his things and headed to the shower. When he had stripped down to his boxers, he felt an uncommon urge to talk to Romilda. Involuntarily, he opened the door and walked out of the bathroom. Romilda wasn't looking too modest anymore. She had changed into one of her lacy, sheer underwear sets, so transparent she might as well have been naked. He climbed onto the bed and Romilda immediately began to kiss him. There was tentative knock at the door, and George turned to look but Romilda turned his face back to her.

"It's all about me now," she said softly. Since no one had answered, Fred popped his head in the door. Taking in the sight, he blushed scarlet and muttered a quick 'excuse me.' He closed the door, but then his head popped in again.

His face betrayed suspicion, and he said, "May I have a word George?" Romilda looked livid.

"Can't you see he's busy?" She snapped.

"Yeah, it's all about her now," George continued. Fred looked to the bedside table and saw the mug of coffee.

"George, you idiot!" George snapped back to look at him, angry. "Who are you calling an idiot? You're the one standing there while Romilda and I try to be intimate." Fred sighed deeply, running his hands through his hair. He heard footsteps and turned to see Katie walking towards him. He hastily closed the door and leaned against it.

"Good morning, Fred! Is George in there?" Fred gave her his best smile.

"Yes, but he's a little indisposed," he responded. She immediately went for the door, but he stood in her path.

"If he's sick, we have to help him!" She urged.

"Oh, he'll be alright," Fred assured her. Tired of him giving her the run around, Katie went under his arm and opened the door. George was busy kissing Romilda's neck. Romilda turned to look at Katie venomously, with a look of triumphant satisfaction. George turned towards the door, and said, "What's up with all this constant interruption?" Katie turned to Fred, her eyes filling with tears. "It's not what it looks like," he tried. She slapped him so hard, tears sprung from the sting, and ran away back the way she came.

Marcus quietly stroked Katie's hair, without saying a word. She had come running into their room, crying, unable to explain what had happened. Marcus had attempted to leave the room, and try to figure out what happened, but she'd held him tight and told him not to go. Now they were just sitting here, Katie couldn't stop crying, and Marcus had no idea what was going on. He figured it had something to do with George. It always had to do with George. Marcus was sick of the whole situation. George always made Katie upset. It seemed like Katie would be reduced to a blubbering mess for the whole year. Even in school, he'd always thought Katie was quite a catch, but she'd only ever had eyes for George. Marcus had been friends with her for a long time, and sometimes he came dangerously close to telling her how he really felt, but he always thought better of it. He knew he'd regret it if he didn't take his chance, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He couldn't let his bid for happiness pass him by, but what if she rejected him outright. He had to do it. He had to.

"Katie?" He asked, his voice rising a couple octaves. Katie sat up, looking at him weirdly while she wiped at her nose and eyes.

"Yes?" Marcus hesitated for a second, almost chickening out.

"Give me a chance. Let's give it a go." Katie closed her eyes for just a moment, and when she opened them, all the sadness was gone, and they were full of optimism. She nodded her head, and threw her arms around him. He held her close, thinking that maybe, his bravery might pay off.

* * *

Millicent woke up grumpy, but she could tell it was quite late. She rubbed her eyes roughly, trying to wake herself up. She pulled back the covers and padded to the bathroom. Looking in the mirror, she almost gave herself a scare. Even now, years after she'd gotten her act together, she couldn't get used to what she looked like nowadays. Sleepy, and craggy mood, she still looked beautiful. She wondered if looking like this would've made her happier at Hogwarts. It likely would've. Pretty girls always had it easier. Now she worked as an Auror (no one had known that she was talented, because she was too ugly for anyone to care) and men at work drooled over her. She had everything she could ask for. But she didn't have anyone, no one in her life who really loved her. She left home to an empty house, and came home to an empty house. She needed someone to fill her time.

She hopped in the shower and washed quickly. Walking out of the shower, Millicent realized that she'd forgotten her towel. There were none in any of the cabinets and there was nothing she could use to dry herself off. As quietly as she could, she opened the door and peeked out to see if Blaise was still asleep. He was snoring, and quite loudly too, so she tiptoed out into the room in search of a towel. She spotted one all the way across the room. Just as she reached out her arm to it, Blaise woke up.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH. Why are you naked?" He asked, shielding his eyes. Millicent quickly snatched the towel and wrapped it around herself. Blushing red, she ran back into the bathroom. She quickly put on her clothes.

As she re-entered the room, Blaise said, "Seriously. Why were you running around naked?"

She looked at him and said, "I forgot a towel." He leaned back in his bed as if to say, oh alright. She quickly left, deciding to go for a run. It would clear her head. Quickly, she went out through the back door of the house before anyone could see her. She'd have to run in circles, since the perimeter didn't allow her to go anywhere else, but it would do. She was unbelievably embarrassed about what had just happened. She didn't think she could face Blaise. She was always going and ruining things. My goodness, could nothing go right? She heard footsteps behind her, and sped up her pace. There was no one in that house she wanted to talk to. Suddenly she felt someone's arms wrap around her waist. She struggled, but then she remembered it could only be someone from the house. She turned to see Blaise, his arms still around her.

He smirked at her, and said "You were so embarrassed you had to run away?" She just looked at him without saying anything. Finally, he let go, and walked backwards from her a few steps. He turned around and mooned her. Milli gasped, not believing her eyes. He was doing this just she wouldn't be embarrassed. He turned to look at her, winked, and walked back towards the house.

* * *

Ritchie woke up to Susan flailing in her sleep. He had been deeply asleep but she was moving around so much there was no possible way he could've stayed that way. He held her tight. "Shhh, shhh it's okay." Susan completely stopped moving and didn't reply to anything. Then she started to get up, her eyes still closed. Ritchie pulled her back into bed.

"No, you don't, "he said. Susan slept walk, and she'd come dangerously close to hurting herself before. Ritchie just held her back, his arms tight around her, until she woke up.

"Did I try to leave?" she asked once she was awake. Ritchie only nodded his head.

"I'm going to take a shower," Susan said, and left the room. She hadn't even been in the bathroom for 10 seconds, when she burst out and ran to Ritchie. She held his face between her hands.

"Stay with me. I know we didn't expect this, but stay, Ritchie. You make me feel safe. Everything's okay when you're around." He smiled at her. He'd been feeling the same way, but he didn't want to pressure her or make her feel like they were moving too fast.

"Come with me," Ritchie said.

"Where?" she asked him.

"Just come," he replied, pulling her forward by the hand. He led her all the way downstairs, periodically squeezing her hand to reassure her. Finally he took her to music room. He pulled up a chair for her beside the piano and sat on the bench himself. Slowly he started playing.

"If I don't say this now, I will surely break. As I am leaving the one I want to take. Forgive the urgency, but hurry up and wait. My heart is starting to separate. Woah, woah, be my baby, woah ohh, woah woah, be my baby, I'll look after you." He sang the whole song, and Susan was almost crying for happiness. He finally turned to look at her, and a single happy tear dropped from her eyes.

Without hesitation, he kissed her, sweetly, but strongly enough to communicate all he was feeling. He wiped that one happy tear away, and kissed her again, gently. He never wanted to let her go.

* * *

**Quote of choice: "If you love, won't you let me know?" Not even gonna tell you who it's by, you should already know ;)**


	7. Of Love and Time

A/N: I know. I know. I know. It's been much too long. To be honest, because of the response I've received, I owe you guys to finish this out. My heart isn't too much into it; I've really thrown myself into my music lately. I know 9 months is a long time. I am sorry. I do apologize. I do also have a life, and other interests and pursuits. I'm sorry to upset you guys. I am sorry.

About this chapter: Note that the events or chunks do not necessarily stack up chronologically. My mind works in mysterious ways. In my opinion, the chapter works best like this.

* * *

After the whole fiasco with Ron, Hermione once again wanted to go into reclusion mode.

What if Ron hated her?

Or what if Harry did?

She couldn't lose the two people who had been with her through her whole life. She just wanted everything to go back to normal, but this crazy Ministry experiment was seemingly never ending. Draco finally coerced her downstairs with the promise of warm, home made waffles. As Hermione should've expected, once she came downstairs, she was assaulted with sweetness.

"Hermione!" Luna said, running to give her a hug. Embracing her tightly, Luna whispered in her ear, "We have to talk later." Hermione nodded.

Seamus popped his head out of the kitchen to say hi, but his mouth was full, and he couldn't do much but wave. She saw Ritchie and Hannah sneak down the stairs, but didn't say hi. A little while later, Harry came downstairs. Hermione sat in the kitchen, talking animatedly with Draco, when he appeared in the doorway and cleared his throat.  
"Harry," she said, going to hug him.  
He looked at her apprehensively and whispered "So you and Malfoy are a thing now?"  
Hermione blushed, and rolled her eyes at him.

"I see you've run into Ron," she said snarkily. Harry visibly hesitated. He wasn't sure whether he should give his friend away, but he wanted to be honest with Hermione. Slowly, he nodded his head. Hermione was about to deny it, when she felt Draco's arm around her waist. She turned her head slightly to look at him, shocked. He pulled her into him and said, "I mean, we are married after all."

Harry looked taken aback but nodded, almost reproachfully. He hadn't forgotten. "Yes, obviously. Well as long as you're both happy, then I'm all for it," he said, forcing a smile. Really, he was quite confused. Was there something wrong with him for not falling in love with Lavender? Did putting a ring on someone's finger help love them? It seemed like everyone was settling in with their match, except for him and Ginny. Well, he didn't even really know about Ginny. He hadn't bothered to ask. If she didn't love him anymore, maybe he should give it a go with Lavender. But then again, she'd said she was in love with someone else. Harry was more than sure it was Seamus. He'd always thought Seamus was a good bloke and he didn't want to come between them.

"Oh Potter, I didn't know you cared!" Draco said mockingly, breaking him out of his reverie.

"I really think Parvati's good for him. He's just a different person with her," Harry continued, directly to Hermione. He didn't care for Malfoy's jokes. Hermione looked at her best friend, not believing her ears. Out of anyone, she'd thought that Harry would want her and Ron to patch things up. They were in love for god's sake! Everyone knew that; everyone knew about Granger and Weasley. It was what everyone expected, what was right. Harry out of everyone should've wanted Hermione to fight for him. He was her whole heart. She was only for him. Quickly, Hermione brushed past Harry, running towards the stairs.

"Well, I don't think that went according to either of our plans," Draco said wistfully. "I'll go take care of the breakfast," he murmured, receiving no response from Harry.

Hermione rushed up the rest of the stairs and busted Ron's door open. Breathless, she stood just staring at him. She could hear the water running in the bathroom. Ron turned towards the door rapidly, alert. Once he saw it was her, he took a seat.

"You should've knocked," he told her calmly.

"Well I suppose you're right. What if you'd been shagging Parvati?" Ron looked at her curiously.

"Don't be silly. I would've locked the door," he said, almost cruelly. Hermione felt as if all the breath had left her body. She held on to the doorframe to stop the world from swaying. This was Ron talking. The Ron who was always meant for her, and only her.

"Do you love her?" She gasped out.

"It's entirely too soon for love, Hermione," he said.

"Did you love me?" She asked, almost inaudibly.

His face softened. "I did, an awful lot. I think I still do. I just don't know if it's enough." Hermione felt a tear slide slowly down her face.

"You kissed me. You told me you loved me," she whispered.

"I do, it'll just never be enough. I'll never love you the way I'm supposed to." Hermione laughed, and he seemed to get angry.

"Don't you understand? You've always been it. You've always been enough, and always will," she told him.

You and I loved each other, Hermione, but we grew up. Things aren't the same," he said. Ron strode over, and kissed her with all he had. The kiss was tinged with longing, sadness, and regret. Could they have made it work? What could've happened if they had truly worked at it? Ron had left, and they hadn't kept each other in their hearts. Hermione had loved him, but in this desperate, clinging way. Ron had loved her, but never realized how important she really was in his life. Now it was too late to fix things. They had to move on.

"Do you understand?" Ron asked her.

Hermione nodded. That kiss had made her realize all of the things she hadn't before.

"I'll always wonder about what could've been, Hermione. I loved you," his voice broke at that last pronouncement, and he looked away. He knew this was the real end. Things would never be the same again. She wiped her tears away, and kissed his cheeks, his forehead.

"I loved you," she murmured. Hermione made to leave but he pulled at her hand. Bringing it up to his lips, he kissed it softly.

"I'll always be there," he said. Hermione nodded slowly. "Everything will be alright."

* * *

Harry walked into Ginny's room with a mug of coffee.

"Hermione's come out," he said. Ginny immediately tried to get out of bed. Harry held her back from the door, but she struggled against him.

"Calm down," he said to her. She pushed him away forcefully, giving him a dirty look, and went to sit on the bed.

"Is she alright?" she asked, picking up her coffee.

"Yes, she's fine." Ginny nodded, somewhat reassured. She'd really needed Hermione these past days, and now she'd finally have someone to talk to. She still didn't know where she stood in this entire situation. She knew Lavender and Seamus were in love with each other. She knew she loved Harry more than ever. She didn't know how Harry felt about her. It had been so long since she'd heard it, from his lips, that he loved her. That's all she ever wanted to hear these days. She wanted to be loved by the love of her life. But it all seemed so unrealistic. Harry had known what he was doing when he broke up with her. Maybe he really didn't love her anymore.

"So, it seems like everyone's giving it a go with the people they've been assigned to," Harry said. He could think of no better way of bringing it up. He didn't want to hurt her feelings. What he wanted was for her to rage at him, to ask how he could think that. That they were supposed to be together and that she loved him. Ginny just looked at him angrily.

"Y'know, Hermione and Draco, Ritchie and Susan, Ron and Parvati." Ginny was more than shocked that Hermione and Draco had decided to stay together. But this wasn't about anyone else. It was about them. "So are you saying you're thinking about giving it a go with Lavender?" He turned to look at her, angry that this wasn't going how he wanted it to.

"Well, yeah, I wanted to know what you thought about it." Ginny smirked at him. She was angry that we would even consider bringing this up with her. If he didn't love her anymore, he didn't have to do this, and ask her opinion or whatever.

"I'm not your mum. You can do whatever you want," she said meanly.

"My mum's never been able to tell me what to do, Ginny, or did you forget?," he fired back. Her face softened; she hadn't realized what she was saying.

"God, Ginny, I just want you to tell me how you feel. Is that too much too ask?" Ginny looked away from him. She couldn't bear to look at him anymore. It hurt too badly.

"I love you more than I ever thought possible," she said, her voice breaking. He took her hand, slowly tracing her fingers. He nodded his head, smiling at her. "God, Harry!" She screamed, tearing her hand away. He looked bewildered, and screamed back, "What?" She sighed, exasperated.

"I want to hear you say it too! You haven't told me that you love me in years! I want to hear you love me," she finished, breathless.

I love you. I love you more than I love myself, more than I love everyone else. You're the only person I'll ever love. You're the love of my life," he said, all in one breath. Ginny looked up slowly, giving him a sunny smile. If he'd been standing, his knees would've gone weak. He took his hand in hers again, content.

* * *

George was looking everyone, but he couldn't find her. He'd looked upstairs and downstairs and she was nowhere to be found. He hadn't looked in her and Marcus' room because he knew she hated to be in there. He didn't find her in the kitchen or the living room, nor any of the rooms downstairs. Finally he decided to check in her own room. Tentatively, he knocked, and not long after, she came to answer the door.

She smiled widely at him, "Come in." He sat down on a chair near the bed, noticing that there was only one bed in the room. Since when had she and Marcus been sleeping together?

"I'm here to explain," he started.

"Explain what?" she asked.

"What you saw earlier. Fred told me everything once he gave me an antidote," he said.

"Antidote?" She asked, puzzled.

"Yes, an antidote. For a love potion." Katie still looked thoroughly confused.

"She slipped me a love potion, Katie," he said. It seemed to finally dawn on her that he hadn't been kissing Romilda of his own accord.

"Oh. I'm sorry," she said, smiling sympathetically. She was confused. After seeing them together, she'd told Marcus they could give it a go. It seemed as if George had forgotten her. Yet now she found out it'd only been a love potion. What could she do? She didn't want to hurt either of them.

"Katie," George said, and made to take her hand. She moved it away, blushing red. George rubbed his hands on his thighs.

"Katie, what's the matter?" He asked her.

"George, I don't think the two of us will ever work out. I honestly don't. I've decided to give it a go with Marcus," she finished. George looked at her steadily, sad, but unsurprised. It'd always been like this. They had always had obstacles for being together. He figured this was the way it was supposed to be. Maybe they weren't meant to be happy together anyways.

"Okay. I respect that," he said, trying to give her a smile.

"I did want to be with you, more than anything. But things change," she said.

"I understand," he assured her, walked out of that room, and out of Katie's life.

* * *

Ron had waited for Parvati to be ready to go downstairs.

"Want to have lunch outside?" she asked him.

"It's freezing!" he answered back. Parvati looked at the frost on the windows and chuckled.

"Good point," she sighed. Ron looked at her closely. He could tell she wanted to talk to him about something, alone, but didn't want to stay cooped up in this room for the entire day. He took her hand in his, coming up with an idea on the fly. They walked swiftly downstairs, and into the kitchen, where they found Hermione and Draco deep in conversation. Hermione seemed to be in hysterics about something Draco said, and her eyes were sparkling with glee. Ron gave her a lingering gaze, then shook himself of his reverie and quickly gathered some food for them to take downstairs. He took Parvati's hand in his and led her down to the library room. She gasped upon walking into the room. She walked along the length of it, tapping the spines with her fingers.

Looking up at the ceiling, she gasped, "It's beautiful."

Ron put his arms around her waist, and whispered in her ear, "As are you." Parvati pushed him away, hard.

Stammering , he said, "I'm sorry." Embarrassed, he avoided her gaze and sat down on the blanket he'd conjured, pulling the food out of the basket he'd brought.

"Well. Sit down," he told her. Cautiously, she walked towards him and sat cross legged on the blanket. They ate silently for a few minutes, looking anywhere but at each other. Finally Parvati got up the courage to ask what she wanted to.

"I heard what you and Hermione talked about," she said. Ron nodded his head. He'd expected this.

"I didn't say anything I regret," he answered.

"Well, how can you be in love with both of us at the same time?" She asked angrily.

"I never said I was in love with you," he replied. She looked like she was about to slap him.

"I never said I was in love with her. I used to be, Parvati. Love doesn't happen overnight, but already, I'm having strong feelings for you. That's all I can offer right now." Her face softened.

"So you're in the process of loving me?"

Ron laughed heartily. "You could call it that. Are you in the process of loving me, Mrs. Weasley?" Parvati was a little taken aback by that, but she liked how it sounded when he said it.

"I am. Far more advanced than you," she joked.

"Well that remains to be seen," he said. Playfully, he started tickling her sides. She squirmed in his arms, not being able to stop laughing. He made her so happy. He was so comforting.

"So you were drawing some comparison between me and ceiling earlier. What was it?" She said, smiling coyly at him. He smiled playfully at her, and drew her into his arms.

"You're beautiful, Parvati. Breathtakingly-"

"Don't pile it on too thick now," she said. They both laughed heartily in each other's arms.

"I look forward to loving you," she whispered. Ron smiled at her sweetly, and leaned down to kiss her. His kiss was short and delicate, but she took his face in her hands, and kissed him with all the passion she was feeling.

* * *

Millicent had walked in from running, quite exhausted. She had run for far longer than she planned too. She'd needed even more head-clearing than before. Back in school, Blaise had always been cruel to her about the way she looked. Now he was being nice to her. What would it take for people to realize that she was the same person? Yes, she was healthier. But it bothered her that everyone treated her better now that she was thinner. The attention she'd gotten was the motivation to maintain her weight. She'd almost thrown the towel once she'd shed most of it, but then she had realized that she needed to keep working at it for the weight to stay off. It was absurd, but now that she was so sweaty, she needed another shower. She shuffled up the stairs and walked all the way down the hall to her bedroom. Opening the door, she started taking off her shoes without looking up. She was going to walk into the bathroom when she saw Blaise just standing there, in his boxers.

"Well, I'm going to take a shower, alright?" She said, after he remained silent for about a minute.

"Can I come with?" He asked mischievously.

"No," she deadpanned. He faked pouted and watched her go. He knew most of the time he sounded purely lusty, but he really wanted to get to know the woman Millicent had become. At school she'd been shy and introverted because of her appearance, and now, not only was she pretty, but more importantly, she was confident and radiant. After about 15 minutes, she walked out of the bathroom wearing a blue shirt, and shorts.

"Merlin, woman, it's freezing out," Blaise remarked.

"Yes, out. We're in," she told him.

"By the way, are you ever going to put some clothes on?" She asked him. He looked surprised when he looked down and saw his boxers. He waled over to a cabinet and pulled on pants and a shirt.

"Care to go downstairs for a bite?"

"Sure."

They went downstairs together. The few people who were in the living area turned to look at them. Blaise and Milli weren't usually seen together. They walked into the kitchen to find Draco and Hermione cleaning up some dishes.

"Blaise!" Draco said, going over to pat him on the back.

"Romancing Milli, I see," he whispered. Blaise stepped on Draco's foot.

"Ow! That was entirely uneccesary!" Blaise shot him a look of pure venom.

"Alright, alright," Draco replied. He led Hermione out the kitchen.

"What would you like?" Blaise asked Milli. She shrugged her shoulders.

"Alright, I'll think of something." He went to look over in the fridge and saw some pesto sauce, mozzarella, and tomatoes. He could cook up an amazing sandwich with this, to really impress her. He quickly assembled the sandwiches, and stuck them in the oven. He went over to sit in front of Milli.

"So tell me about how everything's been after Hogwarts," he said.

"Well, I'm an Auror," she started.

"Yes, I know. I work at the Ministry too," he told her.

"Do you?" Milli couldn't remember seeing Blaise since their graduation day at Hogwarts. She didn't see many people after Hogwarts. She and Pansy had become better friends after Milli had lost the weight. Pansy didn't see her as her servant girl anymore. Sometimes they had dinner at Draco's, but it always felt awkward, trying to measure up to Pansy and Astoria.

"I do. Magical Cooperation," he said. Milli nodded. She didn't much deal with that Department.

"There's not much to tell otherwise. I've got a flat in Diagon Alley. I go to work, come home, sleep," she said.

"No night life? No men in your life?" He asked.

"No. I suppose that's why the Ministry set me up with you," she laughed.

"Well, I mean, I've been getting around, but I still got chosen," he said, offhandedly. She looked at him coldly, making him realize what he said.

"Oh. I didn't mean it that way." She was already walking away, her food untouched. "Milli!"

Hermione took a while to come downstairs. When she did, her eyes looked a little red, but she seemed generally untroubled. Happier, even. Draco didn't want to ask anything that would upset her, but he couldn't help his curiosity.

"So, erm, did everything go well?" He asked cautiously.

"Better than you could imagine," she replied. For some reason, that wasn't the answer he'd wanted. He wanted to distance her from stupid Weasley. He'd already hurt her too much. He set down a plate of steaming hot waffles in front of her, and set a place across from her for himself.

"You shouldn't let him hurt you, you know," he said, looking at her intently.

"He didn't. Finally, we're on the same page," she said. Draco tried to keep from showing his emotions, but for some reason, the fact that they had made up bothered him.

"What page is that?" Hermione looked at him curiously.

"Why are you all of a sudden interested in Ron and I?" Ron and I. He detested the way she said that.

"I'm not. I thought it was polite to ask, since you were quite upset earlier." She nodded her head, still looking at him weirdly.

"We know that we don't love each other like we used to. So we're moving on." Draco tried to hide how pleased he was to hear that. He absolutely did not harbor any feelings for her, but he figured it was important for them not to stray out of the marriage. It was only reasonable.

"Well I'm glad to hear everything's well." She nodded, swallowing a mouthful of waffles.

"These are really delicious, by the way," Hermione said, gesturing towards her plate. Draco flashed her his most winning smile, and she smiled back.

"So you've not told me if you had anyone in your life before this whole madness started," Hermione said. Draco's thoughts immediately shot to all the nights he'd spent with Astoria. How shiny and soft her hair was. How her grey eyes sparkled. Her tinkling laugh.

"I did have someone," he said.

"Who?" Hermione asked softly. She almost didn't want to know. She knew what Draco must have expected out of his women, and she didn't want to complete that mental picture.

"Astoria Greengrass," he whispered longingly. With no prompting from Hermione, he continued.

"We were engaged. She was wonderful. Things had been a little rocky, but the wedding was still on. Then my letter arrived. I figured she would wait for me. That's the day Astoria decided to tell me she'd been sleeping with Zacharias Smith. Apparently he made her feel like I never did. So she packed up her bags and got the hell out of my house. That was that. She was pregnant with his child. What if the letter hadn't arrived? How long would it have gone on. I was so blind," he said, finally done. He felt Hermione's hand on his. He looked up to meet her eyes.

"I'm sorry," she told him softly.

"I'm not," he said, leaving Hermione to wonder if maybe, just maybe, something could happen between them.


End file.
